"Just adding more tools to the arsenal" - Jackie Buntan sticking to her Muay Thai roots for kickboxing war vs. Anissa Meksen
For her next outing at ONE 169, Jackie Buntan hasn't been reinventing the wheel for what is a new challenge in her career.
The Filipino-American has already proven herself as a top level Muay Thai contender during her time in ONE Championship. She clearly has the physical and technical attributes to compete with anyone in the world, but that will really be put to the test next time out.
On Nov. 8 at Lumpinee Stadium, Buntan will make the switch to kickboxing in order to face off with Anissa Meksen for the inaugural ONE women's strawweight kickboxing world championship.
This fight was an opportunity that Jackie Buntan simply couldn't turn down and it came with an interesting challenge for her to overcome.
She's never going to be able to gain large amounts of experience in kickboxing in order to rival Meksen in this range.
Buntan is also not trying to completely change up her game which could set her back rather than allowing her to put her best foot forward.
In a recent interview with Beyond Kick, she spoke about the evolution she has gone through in this training camp and where her focus has been:
"Yeah, we definitely added some new things, but it wasn't a whole lot. It wasn't as if we had to throw away my original style. I knew it's pretty much just adding more tools to the arsenal that I already had stylistically."
Jackie Buntan is confident in her ability to adapt
Adding a few new elements to her game will allow Jackie Buntan to focus on what is really important in this fight.
Fortunately, she is confident in her ability to adapt to different styles thanks to the experience she has accumulated during her time in ONE Championship.
Meksen provides a new puzzle to solve but it's one that Buntan is excited to try her hand at meaning she won't be discouraged when they meet in Bangkok, Thailand, on Nov. 8.
ONE 169 will be available to active Amazon Prime Video subscribers in North America.